


Brother Study

by lily_superlock



Category: Merlin (TV), Sherlock (TV)
Genre: Crossover, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-08
Updated: 2016-01-08
Packaged: 2018-05-12 12:27:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,459
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5666062
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lily_superlock/pseuds/lily_superlock
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"A winter family get together" was always going to be awkward with Merlin's older brothers, Sherlock and Mycroft, but this year he's got to bring, his best friend, Arthur along.</p>
<p>In which, Merlin is the youngest Holmes brother but still hopelessly in love with Arthur Pendragon.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Brother Study

"I really have no idea why I'm coming," Arthur complained, chewing his Frosties.   
"You know that stuff will rot your teeth, why don't you eat cornflakes like an regular adult, or even better some muesli?" Merlin said.   
Arthur retorted by loudly chewing with his mouth open.  
"Who are you calling an "adult" anyway?"  
"You're twenty two years old."  
"I'm twenty two years young, thanks Merlin."  
"Still older than me, granddad."  
"By seven months! And you never answered me, why on earth am I coming to your compulsory visit with the weird posh brothers?"  
"You are literally the poshest person I know."  
"Excuse you, I'm eating Frosties out of an Ikea bowl, look what you've reduced me to."

Arthur was sat, topless, on Merlin's sofa. He'd stayed the night, on the sofa, so really he'd just woken up and sat up and ordered Merlin to get him some food, "something sugary, none of that nuts and berries shit you eat!".   
Arthur often stayed the night now, platonically, of course. They'd just end up drinking or chatting too late and it would just happen. After three years at University together, and living together in Halls for the first year, it seemed natural. And if Merlin sometimes wished Arthur would come stay in the bed with him, well, that was Merlin's secret to bear.

"Yes, poor you, Arthur. I'm sorry I don't have gold-plated bowls for his majesty."  
Arthur chewed down the last bite and drank the remaining milk from the bowl.  
"You still haven't answered me."  
"Because, Arthur, if I don't bring you, Mycroft will come and have you picked up, possibly kidnapped."  
Arthur squinted his eyes, "this is why they're weird."  
"I'm not going to lie, they can be a bit ... intense."   
"I don't know why they want to meet me."  
"You're my best friend," Merlin suggested. Arthur shifted, put the bowl on the coffee table and sighed. "You don't have to come."  
"You know, I've looked up Sherlock," Arthur said seriously.  
"Well, it's hard not to, my brother has a bit of a reputation, he's all over the news these days."  
"Apparently he's a genius," Arthur said, "a genius at reading people."   
Merlin looked at him.  
"...Are you worried he's going to take one look at you and see that you're actually a massive prat?"  
Arthur threw a cushion at him. Merlin ducked.

"The invitation had said "plus one" and if I go alone again, I'm going to look like a right loner and Mycroft might start employing people to make friends with me... again."   
Actually the invitation had said "and Arthur Pendragon" and so had the past three previous ones but Merlin didn't want to intimidate him.  
"Fine but only so you'll stop nagging," Arthur conceded. And added, pointing a finger at Merlin, "you owe me."

***

"So Mycroft's the scary, manipulative one who works in the UK government meaning he basically runs it?"  
"He holds a small position in the UK government," Merlin corrected.  
Arthur gave him a look. A look that meant, you told me much more than that after five pints and three shots that one time in second year.   
"And Sherlock is the genius detective?"  
"Yes.  
"And what does that make you?"

Magic, thought Merlin.  
Where Mycroft conquered intelligence, and Sherlock conquered people (apart from himself, it would seem), Merlin conquered the elements.

"Charming," Merlin said smiling at Arthur and raising his eyebrows.  
"Ha ha ha, very good, Merlin."

They were sitting in a taxi, watching London whiz past them. The invitation was for Baker Street, as it was every year, every crisp November. "A winter family get-together" because god forbid it had anything to do with actual Christmas.

It seemed so perplexing to Merlin that Mycroft and Sherlock would ever bother with such a thing but yet they still did. Merlin was, at last, beginning to get nervous. He'd never been able to hide many things from his brothers, but they'd never worked out about the big terrifying crush he had on his best friend. Merlin used his magic for a lot of good, he really did, so using a little bit of it to create a disarming and confusing emotional response to when Arthur was spoken about, he deemed okay to do. Mostly from Sherlock's reaction, he thought Sherlock felt like Merlin wasn't really too sure he liked Arthur that much as a person and had just fallen into his company.

They finally pulled up to 221b and Arthur quickly paid the cab driver brushing off Merlin's complaints.  
Merlin knocked on the knocker which was crooked meaning Mycroft hadn't arrived yet.

 

Mrs. Hudson opened the door. Of course Sherlock would never come down.  
"Merlin!" She beamed and pulled him in for a hug, like she usually did.   
"Mrs. Hudson," he smiled back; she'd always been the grandma he never had. Well, for the last seven years Sherlock had known her.  
"This is Arthur," he said, pointing behind him. Mrs. Hudson being Mrs. Hudson, pulled Arthur in for a hug as well and he smiled abashed like he had no idea what to do.   
"Come up, dears," she said and they followed her up the stairs. "I'm afraid Sherlock is one of his moods."  
"When is he not?" Merlin laughed but could feel Arthur getting nervous behind him.

Sherlock was dressed (thankfully, last year he was strewn across the sofa in a sheet) in a clean cut black suit and purple shirt, violin posed at his chin, standing near the window.  
John was in his chair, looking at Sherlock as if they were in the middle of a conversation.  
John, as polite as always, got up swiftly and came to shake Merlin's hand.

 

"Merlin, good to see you," he said.   
"And you," Merlin said smiling, it was good to see John. He was always friendly and courteous and more than anything, brilliant with Sherlock. Merlin never thought Sherlock would ever take to another human being but here he was flat-sharing and solving crimes with none other than a friendly doctor.  
"This is-"  
-"Arthur," Sherlock interrupted. John sent a scowl behind him to Sherlock that Merlin didn't miss.  
"Yes, of course, lovely to meet you," he said shaking Arthur's hand. Arthur looked awkward, shy even. It was quite the difference to how he's used to seeing him. He nodded his head as he shook John's hand, as if unsure what to say.   
"Right," John said, rubbing his hands together, "drinks? I think we'll be needing some."   
"That'd be great," Merlin replied and John walked off to the kitchen to pour out some fizzy wine. Something Mycroft would probably hate, which is how Merlin knew Sherlock had picked it.

 

"How have you been?" Sherlock asked from his pose near the window.  
"Can't you deduce that?" Merlin joked. Why did he ever bother joking with his brother?  
"Yes." Sherlock said, making a pointed look at Arthur which Merlin chose to ignore.   
"I've been good, same as always. How have you been?"   
"He's been a nightmare," John said, coming back into the kitchen with a glass of red wine for Merlin. "Red or white, Arthur?"   
"Oh, red please." Wow, he's even saying please.  
John poured him a glass.   
"Honestly, Lestrade hasn't had a case for him since last week, he's been driving me up the wall!"   
Merlin laughed.   
"I'll bet," Merlin said sipping his wine.

"So how long have you and Arthur been sleeping together?" Sherlock suddenly asked, looking irritatedly at John. Here we go.   
"What?" Merlin said, spluttering his wine a little. Merlin swallowed. "We're not."  
They really weren't.  
"I'm not an idiot, Merlin," Sherlock said staring at him, boring into his eyes with intent.  
"We're really not sleeping together," he said slowly, clearly, showing he wasn't lying.  
Sherlock suddenly withdrew.   
"Oh," he said, putting the violin down in it's case and taking the glass of white John had poured him and left on the coffee table.  
Merlin really wanted to ask "oh what?!" but he knew the answer would probably be along the lines of "you're just in love with him, oh dear Merlin." So he kept his mouth firmly shut.  
"My mistake," Sherlock said, then had the audacity to smirk into his drink as he took a sip. Now Merlin remembered why he only saw his brothers once per year.

Things were only going to get worse.

Mycroft arrived ten minutes later and immediately asked Arthur if he was "seeing anyone" (incredibly casual, probably for Arthur's benefit), throwing Sherlock a look as if to show him he knew Sherlock had already gotten it wrong once.  
Arthur looked uncomfortable but still managed an answer, he was well versed in giving political, amendable answers, after all he was Uther Pendragon's son.   
"Please, Mycroft, you know he's single as well as I do."  
"I was making conversation, Sherlock."  
"No, you were making a point."  
"Boys," John said, a warning. "Remember we have company, try to act like normal human beings for a few hours."  
"Where are my manners? Tell me, Arthur, you play Rugby, I'm told?" Merlin knew Mycroft wasn't "told" anything, he knew because he'd had Arthur researched but he was still trying, trying to have a normal conversation with Arthur and that's what counted.

Shortly after, Molly Hooper and Lestrade arrived and Merlin found himself talking to Molly for a long time about her new fiancée and drinking almost a whole bottle of wine.   
He'd lost Arthur to Mycroft's inquisitive conversation and hoped he wasn't feeling too interrogated. 

 

He excused himself and went to the bathroom and found himself ambushed by Sherlock. 

 

"You could tell him," Sherlock suggested.   
"I could say the say thing about you and John," Merlin said, a little surprised with himself for even saying it.  
Sherlock, for once, actually looked shocked. He stared at Merlin for a long time.  
"I was talking about the magic," he finally admitted. "And no, Merlin, I could not."   
And he whisked himself out of the hallway and back into the living room. God, why did his brothers have to be so emotionally complicated?  
He went to the toilet and splashed some water on his face in an effort to sober himself up, fuck all that did.

Walking back to the living room, he accidentally overheard Mycroft and Arthur talking in the kitchen. One would think a coincidence but Merlin would bet Mycroft took it upon himself to suggest they get some more wine just when he knew Merlin would be walking past.

Arthur sounded like he was about to lose his temper.  
"Dumb?!" He snapped. "Merlin is anything but dumb."  
"I'm just saying, it's nice of you to... remain friendly with him."  
"Look, I'm not just remaining friendly with him, he's my best friend and he's anything but dumb, he's one of the smartest people I've ever met."  
"Is that so?"  
"Yes, it is."   
"I can't offer you any compensation then, for your time?"  
"No! I'm offended you would even ask me that." Arthur was using his Uther voice, his threatening voice.  
Mycroft made a pleased sound.  
"He's your friend then?" Mycroft asked.  
"Yes," Arthur said a little frustratedly. 

 

And then there was a lot of silence. 

 

"You should come back next year, Arthur," Mycroft said and then Merlin could hear him retreating back to the living room.

Merlin should have sensed something truly terrible would happen but when Arthur came out of the hallway, some time later, with Sherlock following behind him and then immediately asked Merlin if they could go home, he couldn't work out what is that's actually happened. He complied. They'd been there for several hours now, they'd done their time. He'd had enough pointed looks from Sherlock of whom he responded with his own pointed looks.

They said their good-byes, all kisses on the cheeks for Mrs. Hudson, Molly, Lestrade and John. And firm handshakes from Sherlock and Mycroft.

They got a cab ride back home and Arthur sat rigid and stared out of the window. And Merlin's heart began to beat hard. Sherlock had told him, hadn't he? About the magic, about Merlin being in love with him? And now he was freaking out and who'd blame him.

When they got to Merlin's however, Arthur didn’t do what Merlin thought he would, which is say "night" and let Merlin get out and continue home. No, he said, "can I come up for a bit?"   
Of course, Merlin said yes. He'd never say no to Arthur Pendragon.

The flat was quiet inside which only amplified Arthur's silence.

Arthur sat down on the sofa.

"Maybe you should sit down," Arthur said. "We should talk."

Wow, this sounded like bad news. Was this the thanks for being in love with and all but hey, now it's awkward, let's not be friends any more chat? Or the you're weird brother told me you have magically powers, what the fuck chat?

"I was speaking to your brother tonight."  
Merlin nodded.  
"Or rather, he was speaking to me..."   
Merlin nodded again. This was it, hopefully it'd be quick, like ripping off a plaster.

 

"I need to tell you," Arthur said, scrubbing his face with one hand," and I don't want it to change anything between us. I just need you to know."

 

Well, this was taking an unexpected turn.

 

"I might have been harbouring some... feelings... er affections towards you. More than friendship. It's completely under control. Nothing I can't handle, nothing that should change our friendship."

 

Merlin tensed.  
"My brother put you up to this?"  
"Well... yes."

 

Merlin was horrified. 

 

"I would expect it from Mycroft, I really would but Sherlock! Paying you to pretend to be attracted to me, that is a new low and you're going along with it, Arthur seriously?!" Merlin snapped. 

 

"What are you on about?"  
"I think you should leave."  
Merlin felt very sick suddenly.  
"Merlin-"  
-"Leave!"  
"Will you just listen?"  
"I don't want to hear it."  
"Merlin, I'm in love with you!"

Merlin stared at him.

"Not because you're brother offered to pay me money. He could tell, Sherlock, he could tell. I knew he'd be able to, I just knew it. He came and told me I should tell you and when I refused, he told me if I didn't, he would."

 

Merlin couldn't move or breathe or do very much at all.

 

"I'm sorry, I didn't even want to tell you. Maybe I should go," Arthur concluded and stood up. 

 

But Merlin grabbed his wrist.  
"You're in love with me?"  
"Jesus, Merlin, don't make me say it again."

 

So Merlin didn't, he just proceeded to smash their lips together and kiss Arthur harder than he'd ever kissed anyone before.

Maybe his brothers were good for something, after all (and hell, Arthur did make it back next year).


End file.
